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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29691069">Pretty in Pink, Isn't He?</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/biscuityskies/pseuds/biscuityskies'>biscuityskies</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Haikyuu!!</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Could Be Canon, High School, M/M, Meet-Cute, iwaoi mentioned in passing, just a lil meet cute type thing, tense situations where ur like "they might kiss" and the only response u get is a wide-eyed look, they fall in love as the cherry blossoms fall</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-16 02:14:59</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,465</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29691069</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/biscuityskies/pseuds/biscuityskies</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Hanamaki Takahiro, his name was. A beautiful name for a beautiful boy. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>A brief study on Matsuhana</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Hanamaki Takahiro/Matsukawa Issei</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>7</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>46</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Pretty in Pink, Isn't He?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Pls enjoy this lil study that I did when I couldn't sleep!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Issei remembers the first day of first year very clearly. </p>
<p>He knew some of the kids that had continued into Aoba Johsai from his middle school, but if he’s being honest he really just wanted a fresh start. </p>
<p>For each familiar face, there seemed to be hundreds of unfamiliar ones. There were people who were definitely upperclassmen, strutting their stuff; there were people who were obviously athletic, extra clothes packed into their bags; there were many, many people like him, uneasy and apprehensive about the new year. </p>
<p>And then, in his class, there was a boy who seemed just like him, laid back and not caring just enough about being so obviously a new student that he could garner respect, but not enough not to tip his chair onto its back legs when the teacher wasn’t looking. </p>
<p>His hair was a deep shade of brown, glowing amber as it caught the rays of sun. Issei could only see his back, and his hand tap-tap-tapping on his desk, but he seemed nice enough. </p>
<p>Hanamaki Takahiro, his name was. A beautiful name for a beautiful boy. </p>
<p>In a surge of courage, he tapped the other boy on the shoulder at their first break. </p>
<p>Ah, his face was just as nice to look at as Issei had thought it might be. “Hanamaki, right?” </p>
<p>“I will kill you if you call me Hana,” the other replied with a glare and a completely serious expression. </p>
<p>Issei grinned. “Wanna be friends?” </p>
<p>A slow smile, a shrug, and a nod, and their fate was sealed. They spent their free time in each other’s company, and when Hanamaki wasn’t paying him enough attention, Issei would ball up little bits of paper that he definitely wasn’t supposed to rip, and throw it at the boy in front of him. </p>
<p>Only a couple of days into the new school year, the cherry trees reached full blossom and the petals started to fall. </p>
<p>Hanamaki had promised to wait for a bit as Issei stayed late after dismissal to follow up on something with a teacher. By the time Issei finally stepped outside, Hanamaki was lightly dusted with flower petals - in his hair, on his shoulders, adorning his outstretched hand. </p>
<p>“Makki,” Issei called, watching as the other quickly dusted the flower petals off of himself, dumping them all to the ground. As Issei approached, he scooped some up again and threw them at Hanamaki, grinning gleefully as they came to rest gently in his hair. </p>
<p>“Oi! What was that for?” Hanamaki tried desperately to brush all of the petals from his hair, but the further he got, the more petals Issei added. “Cut it out! Mattsun, I swear—” </p>
<p>“They look good on you,” Issei interjected. “The petals, the pink. It’s not bad.” </p>
<p>Hanamaki’s jaw dropped a little, just enough for Issei to see the hints of his teeth. And then his eyes narrowed. “What are you playing at, Matsukawa?” </p>
<p>“Nothing,” Issei shrugged, turning to go and knowing Hanamaki would follow him. “You just look good in pink!” </p>
<p>A fistful of petals shoved down the back of his shirt was followed by petals of laughter from the other, and then they were racing down the sidewalk, all else forgotten. </p>
<p>***</p>
<p>Two weeks before second year, they were at a sleepover with Iwaizumi and Oikawa, the other soon-to-be second years from the volleyball team. Oikawa and Iwaizumi had already fallen asleep, pressed much closer than Issei would have thought “just friends” would be, though to an extent he supposed an exception could be made when you’re “soulmates”, as Oikawa had confided in him. </p>
<p>Issei lay awake, staring up at the ceiling, trying to force himself into succumbing to sleep. A rustle next to him notified him that Hanamaki was in the same state. </p>
<p>“Hey,” Hanamaki whispered, barely audible through Oikawa’s soft snores breaking over them. </p>
<p>“Hi,” Issei murmured in return, shifting onto his side to face the other. “Can’t sleep?” </p>
<p>Hanamaki shook his head, his finger restlessly toying at the fabric underneath him. He was silent for a moment more, and then, “Did you mean it?” </p>
<p>Issei tilted his head in confusion. “Mean what?” </p>
<p>“When you... when you said pink looks good on me.” His gaze flicked away from Issei, returning in full force only a moment later. “Did you mean it?” </p>
<p>Issei furrowed his brows. “I wouldn’t lie to you about that, Makki. Though, to be fair, you would probably look good in almost anything.” </p>
<p>Hanamaki snorted softly, hiding a grin in the crook of his arm. “Only almost?” </p>
<p>“I have an aversion to orange, you see,” Issei replied, “it’s too... loud. Flamboyant. Crazy without purpose, you know?” </p>
<p>“Don’t wear orange if I’m trying to impress you, got it,” Hanamaki chuckled quietly. His eyes picked up the traces of moonlight filtering in through the window, his hair catching the beams and making them come to life. </p>
<p>Before he realised what he was doing, Issei’s hand had traced over the space between them to brush at a stray lock of hair. He pinched it between his fingers before pulling back rapidly, like his hand was burned. </p>
<p>He cleared his throat. “Yeah. So. Um. Yes, I still think you would look good in pink.” </p>
<p>Hanamaki hummed, looking up at Issei with eyes half lidded. “Good to know,” he mused, finally drifting off. </p>
<p>Issei had the pattern of the ceiling just about memorised by the time everyone else woke up. </p>
<p>***</p>
<p>Two days into the school year found Issei at Hanamaki’s house, stripping the colour away from his hair with bleach that they had picked up. </p>
<p>“You sure you know what you’re doing?” Hanamaki asked, not for the first time and likely not for the last. </p>
<p>Issei hummed. “Could you do any better?” he replied. “I found as much information as I could on the internet, so it’s probably fine.” </p>
<p>
  <em>“Probably?!”</em>
</p>
<p>Issei giggled at the disbelief in his friend’s tone, spreading bleach along a different section of hair. “It’s gonna look so good, Makki!” </p>
<p>“You fuckin’ better be right.” A beat of silence, before the next question. “Do you think they’ll start calling me Hana again?” </p>
<p>“Not if you tell them not to,” Issei replied. “And I’m always free to beat anyone up if you need me to.” </p>
<p>“You’d get in <em>so</em> much trouble.” </p>
<p>“It’d be worth it.” </p>
<p>Hanamaki hummed and brought his knees up to his chest. “You’re sure it’ll look good?” </p>
<p>“Makki, it’s way too late to go back now,” Issei said, holding the brush for bleach in his hand. “Do you want me to go pick up a shade of brown to dye your hair to instead?” </p>
<p>“No! No,” Hanamaki replied quickly, grabbing at Issei’s hand. “Don’t go anywhere,” his volume dropped several levels, “we’ll see this through.” </p>
<p>Issei smiled and continued applying bleach, doing his best not to read too much into the way Hanamaki’s eyes fixed on his form in the mirror. </p>
<p>A couple of hours later, Issei snipped away final ends of hair, brushing the short strands off of Hanamaki’s shoulders - just like how the other had brushed the petals off a year prior. </p>
<p>“There,” he mused, running his fingers through the soft hair to dislodge any remaining snipped hairs, all shockingly similar in colour to the buds on the cherry trees outside. “Told you it would look good.” </p>
<p>Hanamaki reached up to tug at strands now several inches shorter than they had been only an hour prior. “I like it,” he murmured shyly. “I really do.” </p>
<p>“Good,” Issei said with a grin. “I do, too.” </p>
<p>***</p>
<p>Issei remembers the last day of third year very clearly. </p>
<p>Well, he hopes so, at least. Maybe he’ll have forgotten everything by tomorrow, which would be mildly unfortunate. </p>
<p>Graduation is a blur; one minute he’s standing in a crowd with the other third years, the next he’s holding his diploma and grinning as Hanamaki presses a kiss to his cheek. </p>
<p>“We did it,” Hanamaki murmurs, his arms around Issei’s waist. “Hell yeah!” </p>
<p>“Hell yeah!” Issei copies. “I have no idea what the fuck I want to do with my future!” </p>
<p>“Hell yeah!” Hanamaki shouts once more with a laugh, for good measure. </p>
<p>Issei runs his fingers through his boyfriend’s hair. </p>
<p>Oh, that’s something else that happened at the beginning of third year - they finally got their shit together and stepped past the barrier of “friend” into “boyfriend” territory. </p>
<p>Ah, how nice it is to be able to hold Hanamaki freely, without first worrying about the bro code. </p>
<p>Outside, the cherry blossoms are falling from their early bloom. Issei laughs as the petals come to rest on Hanamaki’s hair, remembering the first day they spent together. </p>
<p>“They look good on you,” he says with a soft smile, even as Hanamaki brushes them from his hair. </p>
<p>Pink really does look good on him. </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I hope you enjoyed! I love them so much &lt;3 </p>
<p>You can find me on twitter @biscuityskies if you're interested! I mainly scream about Seijoh (Iwaoi) like, daily.... .. .... .</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Real talk. Heads up, I get sappy in the following paragraphs <br/>TW // talk of depression, the pandemic </p>
<p>As I navigate the new semester and how my study life and my new job (!) allow for free time, and as I wrestle the lasting hold of depression away from me, I hope to start posting more. I let 2020 get the better of me, and plunge me into the darkest period of my life. "But Dani," you might be saying, "it's a global pandemic, it makes complete sense that you were in a bad spot!" Sure, yes, that makes sense. And I really shouldn't be disappointed in myself. Yet, here we are lol. I think it's a matter of getting out of my own head and trying to keep those dark thoughts at bay. </p>
<p>I'm going to try my best to make this year different! I want to do what /I/ want to do, you know? I don't want my dumb little brain telling me I'm worthless to keep me from doing things that make me happy. I chopped off my hair to improve self-confidence and it's working so far, so I think I'm on the right track!! </p>
<p>2021, the year we took back!!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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